Air Force active in Valiant Shield '06 Published June 21, 2006 By Tech. Sgt. Shane A. Cuomo Air Force Print News ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- Exercise Valiant Shield began this week and is largest joint exercise in the Western Pacific. Over a 290 aircraft, three carrier strike groups and approximately 22,000 U.S. military personnel are participating in the exercise. Valiant Shield focuses on intergraded joint training among U.S. military forces while responding to a range of mission scenarios. B-2 and B-52 bombers, F-15C, F-15E, F-16CJ, F/A-18 fighters; E-3 airborne and control aircraft and KC-10 and KC-135 tankers launch from Andersen to conduct sorties in various simulated exercise events while aircraft from the Navy's Lincoln, Kitty Hawk and Reagan carrier strike groups launch from their decks. "The operation is designed to make sure that we have a seamlessly integrated environment where we can conduct deterrence type missions, and if deterrence fails, high intensity combat operations," said Col. Robert Wheeler, 36th Expeditionary Operations Group commander. "That's really the whole the purpose of involving all the different kinds of airplanes whether they're support, for combat, if they're fighters or bombers all across the spectrum--it's one location and 'fight as a team.' That's the opportunity we get here. It's not that usual that we get those opportunities to combine on such a large level and come together and learn to fight together and practice that for the future," said Col. Wheeler No single unit or service fights alone and it is a rare opportunity for Airmen to train with their sister services. Valiant Shield 2006 is the first of what will become a biennial exercise that will allow U.S. forces to exercise joint skills in peacetime and to prepare for success. "Joint interoperability is the key for U.S. forces to successfully respond to future contingencies," said Lt. Gen. David Deptula, Kenney Headquarters commander. "Exercises such as Valiant Shield give us an opportunity to ensure joint command, control and communications procedures are seamless, giving our air, sea, land, space and cyberspace warfighters the ability to quickly accomplish the mission with a wide range of interconnected systems and platforms," said Gen. Deptula. The U.S. routinely deploys forces to the Western Pacific to maintain a stabilizing presence in the region. Valiant Shield along with exercises like Northern Edge and Terminal Fury will help ensure that Airmen are prepared and ready to immediately help a joint team response to any contingency. These linked exercises are a key component for transforming the Air Force for the 21st Century. "The big key to us here is the training environment that it provides. It's Navy, Air Force and Marines working intensely together to make sure that there's no seams from a combat operations perspective, and that's the training we get here, and that's the piece we're trying to make sure of--that the ground-based aviation and the naval-based aviation coming off the carriers that are out there, seamlessly work together as a team and make sure that there's no pieces or parts that are being missed, and that that's taken care of from a combat perspective," said Col. Wheeler "KHQ is ready to oversee this responsibility whenever called upon and our Airmen look forward to working with our sister services and regional partners in projecting peace, power and presence throughout the Pacific for many years to come," said Gen. Deptula.